Franklin Dean
Pert Kelton was the original Alice Kramden in the 'Honeymooners' comedy sketches aired on the DuMont Television Network's Cavalcade of Stars. Kelton's performances took place between 1950 and 1952, before the show became an independent series. However, she was abruptly dropped from her role after being blacklisted, with Audrey Meadows taking over as the new Alice Kramden. In this passage, we will explore the reasons behind Kelton's blacklisting and its impact on her career.
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What You'll Learn
- Kelton was named in the 1950s Red Channels publication as a Communist sympathizer
- Her husband was blacklisted, during the McCarthy hearings, affecting Kelton's career by association
- The network refused to hire Kelton for the sitcom when it moved from the DuMont Network to CBS
- Jackie Gleason was fond of Kelton and wanted to keep her on the show, but was overruled by CBS
- Kelton's poor health was publicly given as the reason for her departure from the show
Kelton was named in the 1950s Red Channels publication as a Communist sympathizer
Pert Kelton was the original Alice Kramden in "The Honeymooners" comedy sketches on the DuMont Television Network's "Cavalcade of Stars." These sketches formed the basis for the 1955 sitcom "The Honeymooners." However, Kelton was abruptly dropped from her role and replaced by Audrey Meadows.
The reason publicly given for Kelton's departure was that she had heart problems. However, the real reason was that she had been named in the 1950s "Red Channels" publication as a Communist sympathizer. "Red Channels" was an early 1950s publication that listed alleged communists or fellow travellers in the United States. Kelton's husband had also been blacklisted during the McCarthy hearings, which affected her career.
Playwright Arthur Miller, a family friend, wrote in his autobiography, "Timebends: A Life," that extensive inquiries revealed that Kelton's blacklisting was due to her husband, Ralph, having marched in a May Day parade many years earlier. Miller emphasized that Ralph had no leftist connections and that Kelton had never even voted.
Kelton's blacklisting caused her to be replaced on "The Honeymooners" tour by Ginger Jones, who was also later blacklisted by CBS. Jackie Gleason, the creator and star of "The Honeymooners," was fond of Kelton and wanted to keep her on the show. To explain her absence, he initially claimed that she had health issues. When "The Honeymooners" moved to CBS, Audrey Meadows was chosen as the new Alice Kramden, although Gleason preferred Kelton and did not want a new actress for the role.
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Her husband was blacklisted, during the McCarthy hearings, affecting Kelton's career by association
Pert Kelton was the original Alice Kramden in "The Honeymooners" comedy sketches on the DuMont Television Network's Cavalcade of Stars. Jackie Gleason starred as her husband, Ralph Kramden, and Art Carney played their upstairs neighbour, Ed Norton. Elaine Stritch played Trixie, Norton's wife, for one sketch before being replaced by Joyce Randolph. Kelton's performances took place around 1950–1952 when "The Honeymooners" was a 10- to 20-minute sketch as part of Gleason's weekly TV variety show.
Kelton's successful career was, however, interrupted by the McCarthy hearings. Her husband, Ralph Bell, was blacklisted during this time, and by association, Kelton's career was also affected. Named in the 1950s "Red Channels" as a communist sympathiser, she was abruptly dropped from her role as Alice Kramden. To explain her departure, producers cited alleged heart problems.
Playwright Arthur Miller, a family friend, wrote in his autobiography, "Timebends: A Life", that extensive inquiries revealed that Kelton's blacklisting was due to her husband, Ralph, having marched in a May Day parade many years earlier. Miller emphasised that Ralph had no leftist connections and that Kelton had never voted in her life.
Despite this setback, Kelton did revive her career, especially on Broadway, where she starred in numerous productions. In the late 1960s, she returned to "The Honeymooners" as Alice's mother. She also appeared in character parts in several 1960s films, including "The Music Man" in 1962, and was nominated for Tony Awards for her roles in "Greenwillow" (1960) and "Spofford" (1968).
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The network refused to hire Kelton for the sitcom when it moved from the DuMont Network to CBS
Pert Kelton was the original Alice Kramden in "The Honeymooners" comedy sketches on the DuMont Television Network's Cavalcade of Stars. Jackie Gleason starred as her husband, Ralph Kramden, and Art Carney played their upstairs neighbour, Ed Norton.
When Gleason's contract with DuMont expired, he moved to CBS, where he had "The Jackie Gleason Show". However, Kelton did not continue with him as Alice Kramden because she had been blacklisted. Kelton's husband had been blacklisted during the McCarthy hearings, and Kelton herself was named in the 1950s "Red Channels" as a Communist sympathiser. This affected her career, and as a result, the network refused to hire her for the sitcom when it moved to CBS.
Gleason was fond of Kelton and wanted to keep her on the show. To explain her absence, he claimed she had "heart trouble", and Audrey Meadows took over the role of Alice Kramden. Meadows had to persuade Gleason that she was right for the part, as he was concerned that she was too attractive to be a credible Alice. Meadows hired a photographer to take pictures of her first thing in the morning without makeup, clad in a torn housecoat and with her hair undone.
Kelton did eventually revive her career, especially on Broadway, where she starred in numerous productions. In the late 1960s, she returned to "The Honeymooners" as Alice's mother.
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Jackie Gleason was fond of Kelton and wanted to keep her on the show, but was overruled by CBS
Pert Kelton was the original Alice Kramden in "The Honeymooners" comedy sketches on the DuMont Television Network's Cavalcade of Stars. Jackie Gleason starred as her husband Ralph Kramden, and Art Carney played their upstairs neighbour Ed Norton. Kelton's performances took place around 1950–1952 when "The Honeymooners" was a sporadically scheduled 10- to 20-minute playlet during Gleason's weekly TV variety show.
When Gleason's contract with DuMont expired, he moved to CBS, where he hosted "The Jackie Gleason Show". Kelton was abruptly dropped from her role as Alice Kramden due to being blacklisted, and the network refused to hire her for the sitcom. The reason publicly given for her departure was that she had heart problems. However, Kelton had been listed in "Red Channels", an early 1950s publication of alleged communists or communist sympathizers in the US. Her husband had also been blacklisted during the McCarthy hearings, which affected her career.
Gleason was fond of Kelton and wanted to keep her on the show, but CBS overruled his decision. To explain Kelton's absence, Gleason claimed that she had heart trouble. Audrey Meadows took over the role of Alice Kramden, although Gleason was initially concerned that Meadows was too attractive to be a credible Alice. Meadows hired a photographer to take unflattering photos of herself to convince Gleason that she was right for the part.
In the late 1960s, Kelton returned to "The Honeymooners" to play Alice's mother.
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Kelton's poor health was publicly given as the reason for her departure from the show
Pert Kelton's poor health was publicly given as the reason for her departure from the show "The Honeymooners". Kelton played the role of Alice Kramden, wife of Jackie Gleason's character Ralph Kramden, in the original sketches of "The Honeymooners" on the DuMont Television Network's "Cavalcade of Stars". These sketches formed the basis for the 1955 sitcom "The Honeymooners".
Kelton's departure from the show was officially attributed to heart problems, with Gleason claiming that she had "heart trouble". However, the real reason for her removal was that she had been blacklisted. Kelton and her husband, actor-director Ralph Bell, were listed in "Red Channels", a publication from the early 1950s that accused individuals of being communists or associated with communist sympathizers in the United States. This listing negatively impacted Kelton's career, resulting in her abrupt departure from "The Honeymooners".
Kelton's blacklisting was a result of the political climate of the time, particularly the McCarthy hearings, which targeted individuals suspected of communist sympathies. Despite being dropped from "The Honeymooners", Kelton went on to have a successful career revival, particularly on Broadway, where she starred in numerous productions. She also returned to "The Honeymooners" in the late 1960s, playing the role of Alice's mother.
In addition to her work on "The Honeymooners", Kelton had a diverse career in film, theatre, radio, and television. She appeared in over 20 feature films and shorts during the 1930s, including "Bed of Roses" (1933) and "Annie Oakley" (1935). She also performed on Broadway, with roles in productions like "Sunny" (1925) and "Greenwillow" (1960), for which she received a Tony Award nomination. Kelton was also a successful radio performer, providing voices for the Milton Berle Show.
In her later years, Kelton was associated with commercials for Spic and Span, and she was a part-owner of the Warner-Kelton Hotel in Los Angeles, which catered to creative professionals. Kelton continued acting until her death in 1968, leaving behind a legacy as a versatile character actress.
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Frequently asked questions
Kelton was dropped from the cast of 'The Honeymooners' because she was blacklisted.
Kelton was named in the 1950s "Red Channels" as a communist sympathizer. Her husband was also blacklisted during the McCarthy hearings, which affected her career.
Audrey Meadows replaced Pert Kelton as Alice Kramden on 'The Honeymooners'.
Yes, Kelton returned to play the role of Alice's mother in the late 1960s.
